Machine for straightening rails



4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

I. T S U G J A MACHINE FORSTRAIGH'TENING RAILS.

Patented Feb. 22, 188'7.-

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(No Model.) A. J. GUSTIN.

MACHINE FOR STRAIGHTENING RAILS.

No. 858,116. Patented Feb. 22, 1887.

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A.'J. GUSTIN.

MACHINE FOR STRAIGHTENING RAILS. No. 358,116. Patented'Feb. 22, 1887.

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' A. J. GUSTIN.

MACHINE FOR STRAIGHTENING RAILS.

No. 358,116. Patented Feb. 22,1887.

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ANDREW JACKSON GUSTIN, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR STRAIGHTENING RAILS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 358,116, dated February 22, 1887.

Application filed August 4,1833. Renewed duly 18, 1884. Again renewed February 13, 18:5. Serial No. 155,830. (No model.)

.T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW JACKSON Gus TIN, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Machines for Straightening Rails, &c., of which the following is a specification. I

The aim of my invention is to provide automatic means for controlling the operation of machines employed for straightening railwayrails and other metal bars, rods, tubes, and

plates.

To those skilled in the art it is a well-known fact that rails, bars, and other objects manufactured by passing the material between rolls contain many curved and irregular portions, and that these curvatures vary greatly in location, relative arrangement, and extent. Various machines have been devised and operated for the purpose of removing the irregularities or curvatures and rendering the metal per fectly straight and true. The means commonly employed for this purpose consist of plungers or pressure devices adapted to act at the required point upon the metal while the latter is sustained upon two supports or anvils located on opposite sides of the pressure de-. vice. In operating with the mechanism the points at which the pressure is to be applied and the amount of pressure to be applied at each particular point are to be determined wholly by the skill of the attendant Experience has shown that, notwithstanding the high degree of skill acquired by the operators, it is practically impossible to determine quickly andaccurately the pressure to be applied in each instance, the result frequentlybeing that the rail is insufficiently bent, or, on the other hand, that it is bent to an excessive degree, so that subsequent correction is required. It is to avoid these difficulties, perrnit the operation of the machine by unskilled labor, and adapt the machine to be run at higher speeds than hitherto allowable that my invention is designed; and to this end it consists, essentially, in combining with the devices by which the rail is advanced through the machine, and also in combining with the pressure devices by which the straightening of the rails is effected, controlling or governing mechanisms the actions of which are determined and regulated by contact with. the raised or irregular portions of the rails.

The invention further consists in the combination of electromagnetic governing mechanism in the manner and for the purposes above alluded to, the electric current or currents being controlled through conductors or contact devices adapted to be actuated through the medium of the passing rail.

Apparatus embodying my invention may be constructed in a great variety of forms, as will more clearly appear after an examination of the following specification. The governing or controlling devices may be purely mechanical in their action, or they may be adapted to operate through the medium of the electric current, as beforeiudicated.

- In the accompanying drawings I have represented the inventionv embodied in three forms, the first two including the employment of electric devices, while the third is wholly mechanical.

The drawings represent my present invention applied in connection'with the straightening-machine for which I filed application for Letters Patent of the United States, October 14, 1882, No.- 74,228, to which reference is made for a detailed description thereof.

The machine representing my original application consists, essentially, of four reciprocating plungers or pressure devices arranged to actsuccessively upon the rail from different sides, corresponding pairs of anvils being arranged to support the rail on the opposite sides against the action of the respective pluners.

g In the present drawings I have illustrated, as a sufficient explanation of'this invention, my improvements applied to asingle plunger or pressure device in the same mannerin which it will be applied to the others.

Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating my electric governing mechanism in connection with the pressure and feed devices, the upper portion of the figure showing in horizontal section the governing devices and their connections to the outer end of the pressure-plunger, of which a top plan view is shown, while the lower portion of the figure illustrates in see tional elevations the anvils and the inner end of the pressure device. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line a c. Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line a a. Fig. 4 is an elevation, partially in section, illustrating the governing mechanism applied to the pressure device. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the parts represented in the preceding figure, looking in a direction at right angles to thatin which theyare viewed in said preceding figure. Fig. 6 is atop plan view of the rib and gearing for operating the valve which controls the admission of fluid behind the plunger for controlling the press ure device. Fig. 7 is atop plan view of the valve-spindle and magnet by which the pressure devices are controlled. Fig. Sis a side elevation of the series of rolls or anvils by which the rail is sustained on one side of the pressure devices,these anvils being duplicates of those on the opposite side of the pressure device. Fig.9 is an elevation showing a modified form of the electric governing mechanism. Fig. 10 is a diagram illustrating the pressuregoverning devices in still another form operating without the use of electricity.

Figs. 11, 12, and 13 are sectional views on the lines I) b, d d, and c e of Fig. 1, respectively.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, A A represent the four reciprocating plungers or pressure devices. having their inner ends grouped around the central raitpassage, in order to act respectively upon the rail from its various sides.

B B represent the anvils or rail-supports, of which there are two for each plunger or pressure device, arranged at opposite sides of said plunger and on the opposite side of the rail-space, so that each plunger will act upon the rail between two points of support. The anvils may be of any suitable form; but it is preferred to construct them, as shown in the drawings, in the form of rolls mounted upon suitable journals, in order that they may rotate to permit the passage of the rail more easily through the machine. The plunger is operated by means of an eccentric, C, acting at its outer end, as shown.

As regards the arrangement of the anvils or pressure devices and the means for operating said pressure devices,the construction and mode of operation are essentially the same as in the original machine. Instead, however, of connecting the inner or operative ends of the plungers permanently to the yokes or heads f, carried by the eccentrics, I now sever the head portion from the remainder, as shown at a, in order that the head may be moved back out of contact with the inner portion, for a purpose hereinafter explained.

To the inner detached portion of the plunger I secure, as in Fig. 4, a laterally-projecting arm, b, the outer end of which is seated between two springs, c and d,-mounted upon a bolt, e, which passes through the springs and through the arm 1) into the main frame. The parts are so constructed as to admit of the required longitudinal movement of the plunger, which is maintained, when released from the action of the operating-head, in an intermediate position by means of the two springs. Whenever the head is forced inward by the action of the eccentrie,it is brought in contact with the inner end of the plunger and forces the same against the rail, the spring 0 being at the same time subjected to compression by the arm upon the plunger. As the head recedes the spring 0 moves the plunger outward to its original position out of contact with the rail, the spring (1 serving to arrest the outward movement of the plunger in an easy and noiseless action.

For the purpose of elongating the plungers at will, in order that they may bend therail to a greater or less extent, the outer end, i, of the plunger is connected with the head, as in the original machine, by a threaded neck and inclined surfaces, 7., so that by turning the portion 1 it will be moved inward with respect to the head or yoke, the portion thus extended serving in turn to move the inner end of the plunger a greater distance in the direction of the rail. For the purpose of controlling this adjustment or variation in the length of the plunger, 1 now provide the rotary adjustable portion 2' with an encircling pinion, l, and actuate the latter in turn through an idle pinion, j, by means of a rack, in, formed on one side of a reciprocating piston, E. The piston E is mounted, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, in a cylinder, F, bolted to the side of the main frame adjacent to the pressure-plunger. The rack in is formed upon the central portion of the piston,whicl1 is exposed through an opening formed for the purposein the side of its cylinder, the two ends of the piston being inclosed tightly within the cylinder.

For the purpose of admitting water or other fluid into the cylinder at the ends of the plunger, I employ a valve mechanism, which I will now describe, controlled by electric devices.

Two ports, a and 0, lead from opposite ends of the cylinder into a cylindrical valve-chantber, G, from the two ends of which dischargeports 1) lead to a suitable outlet. Centrally through the valve-chamber I extend a reciprocating spindle, H, the extremities of which are extended beyond the chamber,and the ends of which are provided within the chamber with two pistons, q and 1', one at each end of the chamber. On moving the spindle H to the right the water or other fluid delivered under pressure into the valve-chamber G is permitted to pass thence through the port it into the righthand ofthecylinderF,thereby moving thepiston E to the lel't,the fluid at the left of the piston escaping meanwhile through the port 0 into the valve-chamber at the left of the piston-valve q, and thence through the outletport 1). When the spindle H is moved to the left, the reverse action takes place, the fluid under pressure passing through the port 0 and forcing the piston E to the right-,while the exhaust is permitted to take place through the port a to the right of the piston-valve 1', and thence through the port 12. In this manner it will be seen that the movement of the valvespindle H causes the piston E to be moved to the right and left, and that the piston in turn operating the pinion l causes the length of the plungeror pressure device to'be varied, so as to apply a greater or less pressure to the rail.

The movement of the valvespindle in one direction is secured by means of a spiral spring, 1, applied to its end, this spring serving to throw the valve, whenever it is released, to the position indicated in Fig. 1, in order that the adjusting devices may be caused to hold the plunger or pressure device which acts upon the rail normally at its shortest length, so that it will fail to encounter the straight port-ions of the rail. The movement of thevalvespindle in the opposite direction, to-effect, through the intermediate devices, the elongation of the plunger, so that it may act with its minimum pressure on the rail, is effected by means of an electro-magnet, J, fixed in position to attract an armature, K, applied to the valve-spindle. Whenever the magnet is charged by the passage of an electric current through its coil, the

armature K and valve-spindle H are drawn to the left, in consequence of which thepiston E will elongate the pressure-plunger, which is, however, instantly shortened, in the manner before described, whenever the magnet ceases its action.

For the purpose of controlling the action of the magnet, I place its coil in a circuit, L, embracing a battery or other generator, M. The circuit-wire connects at one end with the main frame of the machine, from which the current passesto one of theianvils, as shown in Fig. 1,

while at the opposite end the wire connectswith an insulated block or face, 0, applied to.

the inner end of the pressure-plunger and arranged to act upon the rail. During the passage of the straight portions of the rail through the machine it will move past the face 0 without coming in contact therewith. Consequently the circuit will remain open or broken and the valve will be permitted to remain in the position rep resented in Fig. 1, the pressure-plunger being of its minimum length. When, however, a curved or irregular portion of the advancing rail is brought opposite the face 0, it comes in contact therewith, whereupon the .circuit is completed through the anvil, the rail,

and the face 0. The instant that this occurs the magnet J moves the valves and the elongation of the pressure-plunger begins.

The plungers are driven ordinarily at the rate of about one blow per second, and if the rail is not properly corrected by the first action of the plunger the following actions, at each of which the plunger will advance beyond its previous point, will have the desired effect.

v The circuit having been broken and the valve spindle released from the action of the magnet, so that it tends, under the action of the spring, to resume its original position and shorten the pressure-plunger, it is necessary to provide a means for retarding such motion of the piston E, in order that the elongation of the plunger may take place gradually. This is effected by closing the inlet and outlet ports to the right hand of the cylinder F, in the peculiar mannerrepresented in Fig. 2. A pipe, s, containing a valve, b, permitsthe water to pass from the valve-chamber G freelyinto the cylinder F. The return of the water, however, from the cylinder to the valve-chamber takes place, the valve being closed, through a pipe, it, containing a small opening, by which the flow of the water is checked or retarded in such manner that it dan escape butslowly. The water beingthus retained in the cylinder behind the piston E, the latter is prevented from moving rapidly, and is thus caused to secure the gradual change in the length of the pressure-plunger, the time requiredfor the movement ofthepiston Ebeing sufficient to permit several blows or actions of the plunger upon the rail, each greater than the one before.

The opening and closing action ofthevalve v is effected by intermediate devices connecting the same with the piston E, these devices consisting, as shown in Fig. 4, of an upright stud, a, applied to the piston and connected by collars with a reciprocating rod, b, which is arranged to slide at its ends through fixed guides c, and provided in one side, as shown in Fig. 4, with a rack, d, which engages the pinion 6, applied to the valve '1). The valve, being opened to permit the free ,ad mission of water to the piston as the lattermoves to the left, remains open to permit a rapid motion of the piston to the right until the latter has elongated the pressureplunger sufficiently to cause it to apply the minimum pressure to the rail, whereupon the valve 2; closes, compelling the water to escape through the small opening before alluded to, and thus preventing any other than a gradual elongation of the pressure-plunger.

The object of permittingthe valve 12 to remain open until the plunger is sufficiently elongated to act upon the rail is'to avoid the waste of time which would result were the pressureplunger extended slowly from its inoperative to its operative position. Thus, it will be seen, the curvature of the rail is made instrumental in effecting the action of the pressure devices thereon and of determining. the extent of such action.

Passing next to the means for controlling the advance of the rail through the machine, and forstopping the same automatically at the proper point to receive the action of the pressure devices, attention is particularly directed to Fig. 1, in which N represents a rail sup porting and driving roll mounted upon a shaft, P, the end of which carries a loose drivingpulley, Q, and a friction-clutch, R, splined upon the shaft and arranged to engage by an Ito ment with the drivingpulley, and thereby to keep the rail-feeding roll in motion, so that the rail will advance continuously through the machine. An electro-magnet, U, fixed in position, serves, when charged, to attract the yoke S, or an armature thereon, and to draw the same backward for the purpose of disengaging the clutch fronrthe driving-pulley, and thereby permitting the rail'earrying roll to stop and arrest the motion of the rail.

The circuit in which the magnet U is mountcd will embrace a battery or other generator, and circuit-closing devices or contacts adapted to be operated by the raised or bent portions of the rail, in the manner described, in corn nection with the circuit controlling the pressure devices. If preferred, both magnets may be in one circuit, as represented in Fig. l of the drawings.

A system of appliances such as above described being eonnected with each plunger or pressure device in the machine, the operation will be as follows: The machine being set in motion, the roll N will cause the rail to be advanced steadily through the machine between the surrounding anvils and pressure-plungers, the plungers moving rapidly to and fro. 111 the normal position of the parts the inner ends of the plungers stand in such position that they are not encountered by the straight portions of the passing rail, the outer ends or heads of the plungers being meanwhile moved to and fro without acting upon the inner ends. The instant that a curved or irregular portion of the rail is brought opposite the inner end of a plunger it will encounter the face 0 of said plunger, whereupon the circuit, being coinpleted through the rail and through the magnets J and U, will cause the clutch of the feeding-roll to be disengaged and the motion of the rail to be arrested, and will also at the same time cause the valve-spindle H to be moved in such manner as to elongate the pressure-plungers and cause them to be driven inward against the rail. As soon as the rail has become straightened, so that the face of the plunger ceases its contact therewith, the circuit is broken and the feed mechanism permitted to continue the advance of the rail, which continues until the next irregularity therein closes the circuit, as before. \Vhile it is preferred to employ both the devices for controlling the motion of the rail and those for controlling the action of the plungers, itis obvious that either may be used indepemlently ot the other.

The employment of means by which the plunger is retained for a considerable period of time in its extended position is advantageous, in that it permits the pressure devices to act several times upon the rail at the same point, if such action be required in order to render the same straight. In practice it is found that, owing to the difference in the temper of the rails, the same amount of deviation requires the application of a different pressure in different cases. This is automatically provided for, by the device which I have described.

Fig. 9 illustrates another arrangement ofdevices for regulating automatically the length of the plungers. The adjustable plunger constructed and provided with an adjusting-pinion, 1, as in" the preceding figures, is acted upon by means of a fine thread, f, formed on a shaft, 9. This shaft is provided at one end with a coarse thread, it, of rapid pitch, seated in a nut, 2', held by friction in a supportingbox, k. The shaft g is provided at one end with a beveled pinion, Z, driven from a corresponding pinion, m, mounted upon a shaft, n, which is kept constantly in motion, and which is provided with a clutch, 0, for driving the pinion m at the proper time. The clutch o is actuated by a lever, 1), and is held normally out of action by a spring, q, acting upon said lever. The movement of the clutch in an opposite direction, in order that the clutch may drive the gear, is effected by an electromagnet, \V, which will be mounted in a circuit arranged to be opened and closed by the irregularities in the rail in the same manner as the circuits heretofore described. A cord, 0', wound upon one end of the screwshaft g, is passed thence over a supporting-pulley and provided with a weight, 8, at its end, the tendency of this cord and weight being to turn the scrcwshaft backward whenever it is released to the position represented in the drawings, and thereby to shorten the plungers, so that they will fail to act upon the straight portions of the passing rail. When, however, a crooked or irregular portion of the rail encounters a plunger or other circuit-closing device, the magnet \V attracts the lever 12, to throw the clutch 0 into engagement and cause motion to be transmitted through the intermediate pinion to the screw-shaft g. The first eifect of this rotation is to cause the screw-shaft to be drawn forward bodily by means of the coarse screw it at its end, this endwise motion of the shaft continuing until the end of the thread is reached, whereupon the nut t rotates with the screw, the end motion of which ceases. The effect of the end motion of the screw is to turn the pinion Z a suffieient distance to elongate the plunger or pressure device until it is in position to act with minimum effect upon the rail. If the circuit remains closed after the first action of the pressure device, the continued rotation of the screw-shaft will cause its fine thread f to continue the rotary motion of the pinion Z, and thereby gradually elongate the pressure devices, so that thelength of its movement at each succeeding action of the rail will be gradually increased. The instant that the circuit is broken the magnet releases the lever, and the clutch is disengaged by the spring, whereupon the screw is restored to its original position (represented in the drawings) by means of a weight and pulley.

While I have described in the foregoing specification the employment of the pressureplungers or the face-piece thereon as a portion of the circuit and as the circuit-closing device, it is manifest that a circuit-closing device of any suitable character may be operated by means of the plunger whenever the latter is acted upon by the bent or irregular portions of the rail, or that, instead of employing the pressure device itself as the medium for closing the circuit, a circuit-closing device may be secured upon or arranged adjacent to the pressure device in. such position as to be acted upon by the passing rail. The essence of the invention in this regard consists in the employment of the curved or irregular portions of the rail to control, either directly or indirectly, the electric devices, which in turn control the action of the machine, and it will be manifest to the skilled mechanic that the details may be variously modified without essentially changing the mode of action or departing from the principles of the invention.

Having described plans by which the electric current may be made available for operating the controlling mechanism, I will now describe a combination of mechanism which is purely mechanical in its action, being operated without the employment of the electric current or magnet.

The pressure-plungers are constructed provided with adjusting devices and combined with a piston and valve for the regulation of said devices in the same manner as described in connection with Fig. 1. Instead, however, of moving the valve-spindle against the action of the magnet by means of a spring, I now connect the said spindle, by an elbow-lever, a, and link I), with a lever, c, which is pivoted to one of the reciprocating pressure-plungers and connected at its inner end to a longitudinal sliding rod, d", the end of which projects normally beyond the inner or operative end of the plunger. The plunger and the rod will be arranged to stand normally out of contact with the straight portion of the passing rail. When, however, the raised portion in the roll encounters the rod d, it will, through the intermediate connections, operate the valve and cause the plunger to be elongated sufficiently to act upon the rail. As soon as the rail is properly corrected or straightened the rod 01, carried backward with the plunger, will pass out of contact with the rail, whereupon the valve will be permitted to close under the action of the spring, the plunger will be short ened, and the parts will be restored to their normal condition The anvils employed to sustain the rail against the action of the pressure devices may be rigid, as represented in my original machine or, as shown in the accompanying drawings, they may consist of rollers supported by pivots or journals mounted in the main frame, the rolls being arranged to give support at the periphery to the rail. When these rolls are employed, it is preferred to mount them upon pivots or journals the ends of which are eccentric to the axis of the roll, and to secure these ends by means of clamping-bolts, as

ling devices adapted to be operated by bent or irregular portions of the passing rail, substantially as described and shown.

2. In combination with a rail-straightening mechanism, a roll to advance the rail through the same, a clutch for driving said roll, an electro-magnet controlling said clutch, and a device controlling the circuit of said magnet, constructed and arranged substantially as described, whereby it is adapted to be actuated through the medium of the passing rail.

3. In an automatic rail-straightening mechanism, the combination of the rail-feeding devices, the electro-magnet controlling the action of the same, a normally-open electric circuit including said magnet, and devices for closing said circuit, constructed substantially as described and shown, so as to be closed by the raised or irregular portions of the passing rail.

4. In an automatic rail-straightening mechanism, the combination of a feed mechanism, an electro-magnet controlling the action of the feed mechanism, and the open circuit embracing said magnet and having its terminals arranged in position, as described, to encounter the passing rail.

5. The rail-feeding roll, in combination with the clutch, the spring and magnet to move the clutch in opposite directions,and the electriccircuitincluding saidmagnet, and adapted, as described, to be closed and opened through the medium of the passing rail.

6. In an automatic mechanism for straightening rails, the combination of the following elements: a pressure device, mechanism for advancing the pressure device a variable distance, an electro-magnet to adjust said mechanism, an electric circuit embracing the magnet, and means, substantially such as described, for controlling the circuit of the magnet, whereby the machine is adapted to be actuated by the bent or irregular portions of the passing rails. 7. In an automatic rail-straightening mechanism, the combination of the following elements: two anvils to sustain the rail, an intermediate pressure device to act on the opposite side of the rail, a device adjusted to encounter only the bent or raised portionsof therail, and an intermediate mechanism, substantially as described, connecting the last-named device with the pressure device, whereby the irregularities in the rail are made instrumental in governing the action of the straightening mechanism.

ICC

8. In an automatic rail-straightening mechanism, two anvils to sustain the rail, and an intermediate pressure device to act upon the Opposite side of the rail, a device adjusted to encounter only the bent or raised portions of the rail, andintermcdiate mechanism, substantially as described, connectingsaid device with the pressure device, whereby the irregularities in the rail are made instrumental in cansing the action of the straighteningmechanism.

9. In a rail-straightening machine, rail-sustaining devices, in combination with a pressure-plunger, a spring to retract said plunger, a disconnected reciprocating head and mechanism to advance the same positively to a fixed point, and an intermediate adjustable device for transmitting motion from the head to the plunger and determining the distance to which the plunger is advanced.

10. In an automatic rail-straightening mechanism, the combination of the pressure-plunger, the reciprocating head to actuate the same, the intermediate devices to determine the advance of the plunger, the rack and piston to actuate said intermediate devices, the valve to control the action of the piston, the valve-controlling magnet and its circuit, and a circuit-controlling device, constructed substantially as described, to act in connection with the passing rail.

11. In a rail-straightening machine, a railsupporting device, a pressure device having its advance limited normally to a point out of contact with the straight portions of the pass ing rail, and mechanism for imparting a constant reciprocation to said pressure device, in combination with the electro-magnetic attachment to cause an advance of the pressure device beyond the normal point, an electric circuit embracing said magnet, and circuit-controlling devices, constructed substantially as described, to be actuated by the irregular or raised portions of the passing rail.

12. In an automaticrail-straighteningmechanism, the combination of the following elements: pressure devices to act upon the rail, feeding devices to advance the rail past the pressure device, an electric circuit embracing two electro-magnets,intermediate mechanism, substantially as describcd,whereby one of said magnets is caused to vary the movement of the pressure devices, intermediate means,substantiall y as described, whereby the second magnet is caused to control the action of the feed devices, and mechanism controlling the electric circuit, constructed and arranged substantially as described, to be actuated by the passing rail, whereby the rail is automatically stopped with its bent or irregular points opposite the pressure device and the action of the latter automatically regulated to correspond with the amount of lateral deviation in the rail.

ANDRE\V J ACKS ON GUSTIN.

Witnesses:

P. 1. Donen, NEWTON \VYeKoFF. 

